Tuesday, 13 September 2011

All Day In Tromsø

View of Tromsø from Storsteinen Mountain

It was warm today. At mid-day you could comfortably explore the streets of Tromsø without a jacket. It was partially cloudy but when it is partially cloudy it means that it is also partially sunny. The people of Tromsø told us that this was definitely not the norm for this time of year.

There are trees. Lots of trees. The trees are changing colour in Norway. It is only eight days until the first day of autumn. We are experiencing darkness now. As I write this it is 20:30 and it is really dark. All of these marvellous things are a product of moving further south and changing seasons. In many ways Norway reminds me of Canada and today I had a slight pang of homesickness. The leaves at home would also be beginning to change.

Arctic Cathedral in Tromsø

We were in Tromsø all day - 09:00 until 19:00 which meant there was time to go on one of the excursions on offer and to explore beautiful Tromsø on your own. Many people went on the motor coach tour. The tour wound through the city and eventually brought us to a cable car. The cable car whisked us up to the top of Storsteinen Mountain, 420 metres above sea level where we had a wonderful panoramic view over the city and the surrounding waterways and mountains. We also visited the very stylish Arctic Cathedral which was built in 1965. Other people chose to go on a Sami Culture adventure or a walking tour of the city which ended at the famous Mack Brewery - the northernmost brewery in the world.

Pipe organ in the Arctic Cathedral in Tromsø

Beautiful day in Tromsø

Today we had the rare treat of being in port, side by side (or actually end to end) with one of Hurtigruten's other ships, the MS Midnatsol. She is quite a bit larger than Fram but with a very quick glance she looks similar as the colour scheme is the same but...

Now we are heading down the beautiful coast of Norway. Our next destination the famous Lofoten Islands!

MV FRAM is the most modern expedition cruise vessel belonging to the Hurtigrutenfleet, roaming polar waters and taking people to remote places where only few go. In order to give you the chance to travel with us, even if only on your computer screen, we have created this blog. Here you can see what we have seen and read what we have done.

MV FRAM's voyage is followed by

About

The expedition team consists of lecturers and guides from various fields and backgrounds such as ornithology, mammalogy, history, and geology, ready to tackle all your questions. Together with the fabulous Fram officers and crew we make your time on board REALLY worthwhile!